1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communication apparatus having a retractable antenna and a method of operating the communication apparatus. More particularly, it relates to a communication apparatus capable of operating in response to extraction and retraction of an antenna and a method of operating a communication apparatus according to extraction and retraction of an antenna.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to a conventional communication apparatus such as a portable telephone, when the portable telephone receives a signal from a communication system""s base station, a user of the portable telephone depresses a start key or and the like installed on the portable telephone""s cabinet by which an operation in response to the received signal is executed to thereby shift to a speech state.
According to the conventional portable telephone, when the user starts speaking in response to signal reception from the base station, two operations must be performed: depressing the start key for responding to the received signal, and thereafter extracting an antenna for improving the signal transmission and reception sensitivity of a radio wave signal communicating with the base station.
When the portable telephone is used in a dark place, it is difficult to recognize the position of the start key, thereby making it difficult to respond to the received signal.
A conventional portable telephone is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-18478. According to this conventional portable telephone, the conventional portable telephone has a containable antenna, and the antenna is automatically extracted in cooperation with operation of an operation key necessary for speech.
Another conventional portable telephone is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-251663. This conventional portable telephone is capable of being brought into a speech state by extracting an antenna from a contained state to outside of the portable telephone""s cabinet when a signal is received from a base station. However, it does not request a channel connection in response to extracting the antenna if no signal is received from the base station.
Still another conventional portable telephone is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-172388. This conventional portable telephone is capable of automatically extracting and retracting a retractable antenna from a car body in accordance with the telephone""s state of use.
Yet another portable telephone is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-270613. This conventional portable telephone automatically contains an antenna in response to end of speech and automatically extracts the antenna in response to reception of call from a base station.
However, according to the above-described conventional portable telephone disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-251663, despite having a circuit for detecting the state of an extractable antenna, detection of the extraction state of the antenna by the detecting circuit is limited to detecting of the state of the antenna only when a signal is received from a base station and only when the speech start operation is performed. In addition, according to other conventional portable telephones as described above, the antenna per se is automatically extracted or retracted in correspondence with a speech start operation or a speech end operation.
Further, there is no cooperation between the speech start operation initiated by depression of a speech start key installed on a main body of a portable telephone, and the speech start operation initiated by extracting or retracting the antenna. Moreover, it is pointed out that the conventional technology is devoid of practical performance.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication apparatus having a retractable antenna and a method of operating the communication apparatus capable of detecting a state of extracting and/or retracting an antenna and executing an operation in correspondence with the state.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a communication apparatus having a retractable antenna and a method of operating the communication apparatus for bringing about cooperating performance between an operation initiated by extracting or retracting an antenna and an operation of depressing a speech start/finish key at a surface of the mobile machine.
In order to achieve the above objects, a communication apparatus according to the present invention comprises a retractable antenna and a controller requesting a channel connection in response to extraction of the retractable antenna if a signal for establishing a channel connection is not received via the retractable antenna, and replying to the signal for establishing a channel connection in response to extraction of the retractable antenna, if the signal is received via the retractable antenna, whereby the channel connection is established.
A mobile station according to the present invention comprises a body, a containable antenna disposed in the body, a controller for executing a speech start operation in response to extraction of the containable antenna from the body and requesting a channel connection if a signal for establishing a channel connection is not received.
A method of operating a communication apparatus according to the present invention comprises the steps of detecting a state of a retractable antenna retractable with respect to a body, requesting a channel connection when extraction of the retractable antenna from the body is detected, if a signal for establishing a channel connection is not received through the retractable antenna.